Benchmarks continue to trade in red in morning deals

Indian equity benchmarks continued to trade in red in morning deals, amid weak trends in Asian markets and unabated foreign fund outflows. Exchange data showed that Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) offloaded equities worth Rs 549.37 crore on Monday. Some concern also came with private report stated that a sustained oil price of $110 a barrel could undermine India’s economic stability, likely forcing the central bank to resume hiking interest rates. It said as the world’s third-biggest consumer of oil, India is one of the most exposed economies in Asia to rising crude prices. A $10 increase in oil prices boosts inflation by 50 basis points and contributes to a 30 basis-point widening in the current account balance. Sectorally, auto stocks remained in focus as data shared by the Federation of Automobile Dealers Associations (FADA) showed that during October this year, total sales of 2.12 million units were recorded compared to 2.29 million units during October 2022. On the other hand, three-wheeler (3W) sales were up by 46 per cent, commercial vehicles by 10.3 per cent, and tractors by 6.2 per cent during the period under review. On the global front, Asian markets are trading mostly lower after data showed China's exports fell for a sixth consecutive month in October, adding to economic woes.

The BSE Sensex is currently trading at 64793.74, down by 164.95 points or 0.25% after trading in a range of 64701.59 and 65021.29. There were 14 stocks advancing against 16 stocks declining on the index.

The broader indices were trading in green; the BSE Mid cap index rose 0.29%, while Small cap index was up by 0.29%.

The top gaining sectoral indices on the BSE were Oil & Gas up by 0.69%, PSU up by 0.68%, Healthcare up by 0.65%, Utilities up by 0.53% and Energy up by 0.45%, while Realty down by 0.71%, Bankex down by 0.32% and FMCG down by 0.02% were the top losing indices on BSE.

The top gainers on the Sensex were Sun Pharma up by 0.71%, NTPC up by 0.61%, SBI up by 0.50%, Indusind Bank up by 0.46% and TCS up by 0.34%. On the flip side, ICICI Bank down by 0.89%, Power Grid Corporation down by 0.70%, HDFC Bank down by 0.69%, Asian Paints down by 0.64% and Kotak Mahindra Bank down by 0.56% were the top losers.

Meanwhile, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman has said that India's G20 Presidency has provided a clear policy direction for addressing the needs of the majority of the global population whose voices are often unheard in multilateral forums. On December 1, 2022, India assumed the mantle of G20 Presidency.

She said the G20 New Delhi Leaders Declaration (NDLD), unanimously agreed to by all G20 countries, addresses some of the pressing challenges confronting the global economy and also provides policy guidance for a future built on people-focused principles and trust-based partnerships.

She stated ‘Even though by the end of this month, our role as G20 Presidency comes to an end, momentum must be maintained on the policy guidance in the New Delhi Leaders' Declaration. Not only should we engage with G20 partners to take forward the outcomes, but we should also explore how best we can integrate these outcomes into India's domestic policy-making process so that we can lead by example.’

She emphasised that concerted efforts were taken by, India's G20 Presidency, to mainstream the concerns and aspirations of the Global South. Further, she said  since the pandemic, the global economy has been grappling with multiple crises, adversely affecting global growth. While the recovery is underway, it remains slow and uneven. She added the current pace of global growth remains quite weak, well below the 3.8 per cent average in the two decades before the pandemic and looking ahead over the medium term, growth prospects have weakened further.

The CNX Nifty is currently trading at 19375.50, down by 36.25 points or 0.19% after trading in a range of 19347.40 and 19410.00. There were 25 stocks advancing against 25 stocks declining on the index.

The top gainers on Nifty were ONGC up by 1.84%, Dr. Reddy's Lab up by 1.68%, Hindalco up by 1.00%, Sun Pharma up by 0.69% and BPCL up by 0.68%. On the flip side, ICICI Bank down by 0.95%, HDFC Bank down by 0.74%, Power Grid Corporation down by 0.72%, Asian Paints down by 0.70% and Bharti Airtel down by 0.60% were the top losers.

Asian markets are trading mostly lower; Nikkei 225 slipped 415.32 points or 1.29% to 32,293.16, Hang Seng declined 270.02 points or 1.53% to 17,696.57, Straits Times fell 10.52 points or 0.33% to 3,170.01, KOSPI dropped 69.76 points or 2.87% to 2,432.61, Jakarta Composite plunged 39.96 points or 0.58% to 6,838.88 and Shanghai Composite weakened 10.81 points or 0.35% to 3,047.60.

On the flip side, Taiwan Weighted added 9.81 points or 0.06% to 16,659.17.